Changelog:
Release Notes for 2.7.0
This release fixes issues found while testing RC1.
For details, see the commit logs.
Known Issues
DevMode always starts in Super Dev Mode, so it’s not as easy to test in production mode. See issue 9004 for workarounds.
Release Notes for 2.7.0 (RC1)
Highlights
Super Dev Mode is now the default. DevMode automatically starts Super Dev Mode and reloading a web page automatically runs the compiler when necessary. (The -nosuperDevMode flag may be used to revert to the old behavior.)
Compiling in Super Dev Mode is much faster after the first compile.
Experimental support for GSS, also known as Closure Stylesheets. (See below.)
Known Issues
gwttar files are incorrect. (Fixed in the next version.)
Deprecations
GWT Designer doesn’t work with 2.7 and is no longer supported. (Source code is available if someone wishes to revive this project.)
IFrameLinker and XSLinker are deprecated because they don’t work in Super Dev Mode. However, we don’t have suitable replacements for all use cases yet. For updates and possible workarounds, see issue 8997.
Compiler changes
In draft mode and Super Dev Mode, all compiler optimizations are turned off for better debugging. For example, null pointers are detected sooner.
JSNI references no longer require fully qualified class names when this wouldn’t be necessary in Java. (For example, imports work.)
We’ve started implementing JS Interop annotations, which will make it much easier to use GWT with JavaScript libraries. The specification is not final and there are bugs, so production GWT apps and libraries should continue to use JSNI for now. If you wish to experiment, you can enable JS Interop using the -XjsInteropMode flag, which is available for the compiler and Super Dev Mode. (It doesn’t work with old DevMode.)
The experimental -XmethodNameDisplayMode flag adds a displayName property to each JavaScript function containing the name of the Java method. This makes Java method names available in browser debuggers at the expense of code size. (Also available in Super Dev Mode.)
Boxed JavaScript strings (created in JavaScript using new String(...)) are no longer considered equivalent to Java strings. They should be unboxed before being passed to Java.
Many bugfixes.
Library Changes
JDK emulation
Significant performance improvements in String, ArrayList, HashMap, and Exception.
New emulated classes: Locale, NavigableSet, and NavigableMap.
New emulated methods in Class, String, Exception, RuntimeException, Logger, Arrays, Collections, and Map.Entry.
LinkedList extends Deque and handles incorrect usage better.
Logging and Stack Traces
Better wrapping of exceptions thrown from JavaScript.
GWT apps that inherit the com.google.gwt.logging.Logging module have different default behavior for messages logged using the java.util.logging package. The new default is to log messages at level SEVERE and above to the browser’s console. PopupLogHandler and SystemHandler are no longer enabled by default.
FirebugLogHandler and NullLoggingPopup have been removed. ()
Experimental GSS support
The CssResource.enableGss configuration property turns on GSS support.
When enabled, resource files with a ‘gss’ extension are parsed as a Closure Stylesheet.
When enabled, GSS can be used in a UiBinder file by setting gss="true" on a ui:style tag.
If the CssResource.legacy configuration property is set, .css resources and ui:style tags without gss=true will first be converted to GSS and then parsed as GSS.
UiBinder
The ui:data tag has new attributes: mimeType and doNotEmbed.
GWT-RPC
The rpc.XserializeFinalFields configuration property turns on experimental support for serializing final fields.
LinkedHashSet may be serialized without a serialization policy.
deRPC is removed.
RequestFactory
Support overridden methods and generics better.
Fix support for @SkipInterfaceValidation on RequestContext methods.
Internationalization
Upgraded to CLDR 25.
Browser API changes
Updated support for typed arrays.
Added History.replaceItem().
Fixed an issue with Window.addWindowScrollHandler on Chrome.
Widgets
The deprecated com.google.gwt.widgets package is removed.
Various bugfixes and minor improvements.
Developer Tool Changes
Dev Mode
The -nosuperDevMode flag may be used to turn off Super Dev Mode and revert to old Dev Mode. (However, most current browsers no longer support Dev Mode plugins.)
The -modulePathPrefix flag may be used to move DevMode’s output to a subdirectory of the war directory.
Super Dev Mode
Compiling is much faster after the first compile. (Compiling is skipped altogether if no files have changed.)
The first compile no longer happens at startup.
Chrome reloads the page faster while debugging. (Sourcemap file size is reduced.)
The -launcherDir flag may be used to avoid running the GWT compiler before starting Super Dev Mode. When enabled, Super Dev Mode writes stub .nocache.js files that automatically recompile the GWT app before loading it. Therefore the bookmarklets aren’t needed. (This feature is automatically enabled when launched via DevMode.)
The -logLevel flag may be used to adjust how compile errors are reported.
The Dev Mode On bookmarklet dialog shows whether Super Dev Mode is turned on for each module on the page.
Messages logged using java.util.logging at level SEVERE and above are written to the browser console by default.
Fixed a startup faesting
Better error reporting for compile errors while running tests.
Messages logged using java.util.logging at level SEVERE and above are written to the browser console and test output by default.
-Dgwt.htmlunit.debug may be used to open a JavaScript debugger window when running a test using HtmlUnit.
Removed RunStyleRemoteWeb and the BrowserManager tool.
Removed flags: -standardsMode, -nostandardsMode, -quirksMode. (GWTTestCase tests are always run in an HTML page in standards mode.)
For even more detail, see the Issue Tracker.
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